A Study
by Sinfully Sadistic
Summary: Shinobi: Warriors trained from birth in the art of assassination; creatures with hands stained by blood. Can sanity be found when one is raised as a killer? A series of one-shots delving into the minds of the shinobi of Konohagakure. Not self-insert.
1. A Study

Another one-shot from me. My first time writing for this fandom. Now, let me warn you, this is really just a drabble on my part, and more like a documentary, I guess. I was in a weird mood when I wrote this, so I'm sorry if it's boring and doesn't make sense. I didn't write this expecting anyone to like it.

**WARNINGS!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS*** though, in my opinion, if you haven't read up to date in the manga, then boo on you.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto series, if I did, Naruto would get injured way more than he does, Sasuke wouldn't be such an angsty ass hole, Sakura would have lost her pansy-ass personality way earlier than she did, and Orochimaru wouldn't have that creepy tongue *shudders*.

Oh, might I suggest listening to _Comptine d'un autre ete_ _l'apres midi_ by Yann Tiersen. It's a beautiful piano piece that I think goes very well with the somber mood of this one-shot.

Enjoy.

_

* * *

  
_

A Study

The sun is hidden behind dark grey, nearly black, clouds, casting a shadow across the large village. The village's inhabitants are going about their daily lives; shopping, eating, conversing, playing, learning, teaching, training. The sounds from the village drift softly up to me. They are the sounds of a place enjoying a time of peace.

They are the sounds of _Konohagakure_; the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

My name is Ai. My real name is unimportant. Though, even if I had chosen to tell you, I would not be able to. I forgot my name, along with the names and faces of my parents and any other relatives that I may or may not have had a long time ago. Living a life by lying, deceiving, and wearing masks will do that to you; erase any memories that will only hinder your abilities to do the above mentioned things.

As will living for thousands upon thousands of years.

I am a Chronicler, one who observes and records what they see, hear, smell, taste, etc. I have written many entries in my long career as a Chronicler, a lot of them having to do with animals, nature, and other things of the sort.

My newest subject, though, has become the _shinobi_, a breed of stealthy, powerful, merciless creatures. These creatures train from early childhood to become the killers they grow up to be, and, once they reach adulthood, take on mission after mission, steadily building their list of sins to exponential numbers.

It shocked me just a little bit when I saw a young child of about twelve take down a grown man that easily out-sized and out-weighed the boy with nothing but a triangular-shaped knife; a _kunai_, as they call it.

I was shocked even more when that child cleaned his blade off on the grass with a small smile on his face.

I first started studying the _shinobi_ fifty years ago, when I had come over to this country to find something different to observe. When I stumbled upon the child, the reason for my sudden interest in the killing creatures, I decided right then and there that I would study this species until it died out, for I would surely out-live all of them.

I watched and observed and learned and recorded. I was content to continue doing so until I learned about the _bijuu_, dark and terrifying entities that ravaged the lands and were just as merciless, if not more so, than the _shinobi_. They were called monsters; they were called gods; the _bijuu_ were called many things, but those names were only used to hide what the creatures truly were: demons.

One of the _bijuu_ in particular caught my eye. The _Kyuubi_, or Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. The _Kyuubi_ was a massive creature that was said to create earthquakes with its very steps. I had the rare opportunity to see the creature up close; observe it, draw it, and speak with it. It was very wise and had lived far longer than even I, who, at the time, was just under six thousand years of age.

It was, by far, the most intriguing experience I have ever had, and the _Kyuubi_ and I became close, 'companions in age', as we liked to say.

However, soon I had to leave to record more of my observations, and the _Kyuubi_ had to go torment other things.

It was after I left the _bijuu_ that I happened upon _Konohagakure_. At the time, an old, kind man by the name of Sarutobi ran the village as its _Hokage_. He was a good leader, and continued to be so until his dying day.

Sarutobi had three students. These students were known as 'The Three Legendary _Sannin_' for their parts in the war, and one of them, by the name of Jiraiya, was the teacher of the soon-to-be Fourth _Hokage_, or _Yondaime_, Namikaze Minato.

Namikaze Minato was nominated for the position of Fourth _Hokage_ by his teacher's teacher, and current _Sandaime_, Sarutobi. After much deliberation, he accepted the position.

Minato's reign as _Yondaime_ did not last long. The _Kyuubi_, for reasons unknown even to me, decided to attack the village in a fit of blood-thirsty rage. The same day the fox demon attacked the village, also happened to be the day the _Yondaime_'s son was born, killing his mother in the process.

Minato, staring down at his new-born son, had listened to the sounds of battle coming from outside the hospital, and came to a decision.

Later that night, Namikaze Minato sacrificed himself to seal the _Kyuubi_ in his own child.

That child's name was Naruto.

Naruto fascinated me to no end. He was a _Jinchuuriki_, a vessel, a sacrifice. The child with hair as bright as the sun and eyes as blue as the sky, he was in every way an exact replica of his father. The villagers, however, could not seem to see that, and because of the demon sealed inside the boy, they ostracized him.

The villagers were a bunch of idiots.

Despite the cold, hateful glares, and the not-so-silent whispers, Naruto grew up with a smile on his face. Despite the lack of money, the lack of real food, the lack of clothes, and the lack of people to help him, Naruto grew up laughing. Despite all the terrible things he went through, and despite the heart wrenching loneliness I knew only too well, Naruto did not cry.

The boy was definitely the son of his father.

Naruto did not know about the _Kyuubi_ until a traitor by the name of Mikiki, I believe (not that I really care all that much, but since he was involved with Naruto, my new case study, I feel the need to include him, even if his name is wrong. Is it Miziki? Or Mizunaki? I'm sure it was Mizu-something…), tricked him into stealing a special **forbidden** scroll that contained many seals that were also forbidden. He planned on using Naruto as a scapegoat to take the blame.

When his childhood friend, and Naruto's own teacher and pseudo father, Umino Iruka, showed up and realized what was going on, Mikiki decided to tell Naruto just why the villagers hated him so much.

Naruto did not take the news so well.

However, soon enough, the child got over it and ended up saving his father-like-figure, thus, earning his _hitai-ite_, and graduating from the _shinobi _academy.

Forgive me, I am not trying to tell the child's life story. Back to the point.

Naruto, being who he is, grew up to be an…interesting person with a clashing personality. He grew up without proper tutelage, and without the love and kindness most other children thrive on and learn from. It is because of this that Naruto has as many strengths as he does weaknesses.

Naruto is stubborn and worryingly masochistic. He is loud and obnoxious. He wears orange with blonde hair and tan skin (the colors look absolutely _terrible_ together). He gets angry easily, and is not the sharpest _kunai_ in the set.

His _taijutsu_ is the equivalent of a street fighter's; unpredictable yet sloppy, leaving many potentially fatal openings. His _chakra_ control is absolutely horrendous, though that can be chalked up to the _Kyuubi_'s massive reserves.

However, despite all the flaws that Naruto has, he has just as many, if not more, strengths.

He is strong-willed and brave. He is bright and colorful. He is the epitome of everything human, even with a demon housed inside his body. Naruto sees and feels through eyes unclouded by hate (1).

He is instinctive and he is ingenious. He is kind and forgiving. He is honest. He holds no grudges. He finds the good in everything, and if he can't, he creates the good, and drags it up to the forefront (2). He has massive _chakra_ reserves and is incredibly flexible and agile.

In other words, Naruto is an enigma, and because of this, I will continue to observe and learn and record him until the day he dies. Which, in my own personal opinion, may be quite a long ways off.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai  
(love)_

_

* * *

_

Oh my God, Word hates Japanese words with a passion that burns brighter than the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns. So, did you hate it? I accept any kind of review, and **reviews are always appreciated**.

(1) Thank "Princess Mononoke" for that line.

(2) Does that make any sense at all? I thought it did, but that could just be because I wrote it...


	2. An Observation

**READ THIS:** Okay, because the people who reviewed this story, alerted it, even though it had said _complete_, the one-shot that I posted separately is now also added as a second chapter to this story. I'll leave it saying _complete_ because I'm not sure when or if I'll add a third installment. It all depends on the mood, though I am thinking of doing one of Ai's meeting with the _Kyuubi_...how's that sound?

This is the second installment of my Study series. You don't necessarily have to have read the first one to get this, but I would recommend it anyway, simply because there are some things I explain in that one that I didn't feel like explaining in this one. In, 'A Study', someone told me that, at first, they weren't going to read it because they thought it was a self-insert. Don't worry, it's not (I **hate** those things). The narrator's alias is Ai, they're very old, and they're a Chronicler. That's all I give you. The rest is up to your interpretation.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor will I ever own it. If I did, I would be filthy stinking rich with a big-ass bed, and all the time in the world to sleep.

**WARNING!!: **As always, ***SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* **though I think they're mostly from the Kakashi _Gaiden_ arc that I didn't actually watch because I follow the manga now and have shunned the anime.

Enjoy.

* * *

An Observation

In the many years that I have been a Chronicler, I have perfected the art of observation. I have watched and studied many things for so long that I almost never miss anything. On the rare occasion that I do, it is because I have chosen not to focus on it.

My name is Ai, and for the past fifty or so years, I have been studying a rare species known as _shinobi_. While my studies on _shinobi_ in general are important to me, my studies on individual _shinobi_ keep my attention for far longer periods of time.

My current subject is Hatake Kakashi.

Before the young Namikaze became the _Yondaime_, he was a teacher for his own group of _gennin_, young _shinobi_-in-training.

His group consisted of three children:

Rin (I have found no information pertaining to a last name, though, if I were to assume by her face paintings, perhaps an Inuzuka?) was a young girl with brown hair and a block of purple face paint on each cheek. In the Namikaze group, she was the official healer and the unofficial peace-keeper.

Uchiha Obito was the…clown, I suppose, of the group. For some reason, the boy always showed up to team meetings late, claiming that he was helping an old lady with luggage, or doing other such random good deeds of the sort. Obito was stubborn and goofy, yet carefree and kind-hearted. He and the third member of Team Namikaze butted heads constantly, though Obito was always the louder, more obnoxious, of the two. At the time, he had yet to activate his _Sharingan_.

The third member, and the one who really held my interest, was Hatake Kakashi, a silver-haired, stick-to-the-rules little boy with a cloth covering the bottom half of his face (To this day, I have yet to see what he looks like underneath the mask. What is he hiding?). He was incredibly intelligent for his age, and had the strength to go with it. Out of the three _gennin_, Kakashi was by far the more serious. He believed his teammate, Obito, to be a complete and total idiot, thus was always found arguing with the Uchiha.

Kakashi was a stickler for the rules, believing that the 'mission always comes first'; whereas his 'rival' and fellow teammate, Obito, believed, "Those that break the rules and regulations are scum. But those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum (1)."

Team Namikaze only had a short amount of time to learn to work with one another and to build their strengths before the Third Great _Shinobi_ World War broke out.

At the tender age of thirteen, Kakashi became a _Jounin_, and led his team on a mission that was supposedly for the benefit of _Konohagakure_ (The actual mission is unimportant, for it involves the politics of war, which I do not care for).

While attempting to complete this mission, Rin was kidnapped by _Iwagakure_ _shinobi_. Kakashi, with his 'the mission comes first' attitude, had wanted to leave the girl and complete their mission. Obito was of the opposite opinion.

Soon enough, Obito left Kakashi to complete his mission, and went after their stolen comrade. Eventually, after thinking over whatever Obito had said, Kakashi decided to help him in the rescue mission.

Kakashi's left eye was damaged by an attack intended for Obito that he intercepted. It was after Kakashi's sacrifice that Obito awakened his _Sharingan_, thus allowing him to kill the attacker.

The two boys then went on to save Rin, but as they were escaping, the cave they were in collapsed, killing Obito.

Before the Uchiha died, he asked Rin to remove one of his _Sharingan_ eyes and implant it into Kakashi's damaged eye socket. She did.

Soon after, the war ended.

Soon after that, the _Kyuubi_ attacked, ridding Kakashi of both his teacher and his last teammate (2).

Kakashi was alone.

It was at this time that Naruto had been born, and I had become more interested in the _Jinchuuriki_ , pushing the study of Kakashi to the 'do when I have time' list.

It was sheer luck when Kakashi ended up as Naruto's teacher.

When I saw Kakashi again, I immediately noticed the differences. Of course, he still had the cloth that covered the bottom half of his face, but now, he had his _hitai-ite_ pulled down over the eye Obito's _Sharingan_ was now situated.

The biggest change, though, was the way he acted. Gone was the stick-up-his-ass, must-complete-the-mission attitude, and in its place was an act that reminded me strongly of Obito.

Kakashi was a lot more laid-back, for one. He had also taken to arriving late, expressing many of the same excuses I remembered the Uchiha using ('I got lost on the road of life', 'I was helping an old woman carry her luggage', 'I was saving a group of orphans from a fire'(3)).

Kakashi had also adopted the 'team comes first' philosophy that his fallen brother-in-arms had lived by, and he made sure to drill it into the heads of his own team of _gennin_.

While Kakashi was apathetic and seemingly indifferent towards the world, I could tell that all was not what it seemed with him. Hidden beneath the layers of calm, laziness, and cool indifference swirled a multitude of emotions.

I could see anger. Anger towards everyone and everything that took _everyone_ and _everything_ away from him. Anger towards his comrades and loved ones for being self-sacrificing idiots. Anger towards himself for not protecting those same self-sacrificing idiots with the strength he knew he had.

I could see fear. Fear of going to sleep and dreaming of the deaths of his loved ones. Fear of being unable to protect his new loved ones and any future loved ones he would come to have. Fear of losing everyone and everything _again_.

I could see sadness. I could see sadness so profound that I was surprised Kakashi actually managed to keep himself sane. His sorrow was so deep, I wondered how he hadn't drowned in it, yet. The loss of everyone he loved had hit him hard, and continued to do so every time he visited the memorial, or every time he watched his _gennin_ interact.

I could see fatigue. I saw a bone-deep weariness that nearly overwhelmed all the other emotions swirling about behind his mask. Kakashi was tired; tired of losing; tired of living.

However, despite how tired he was, Kakashi did not lie down for an eternal rest. He took soldier pills, drank coffee, and fought (4). He fought off the fatigue with a will so strong and unbreakable that I began to feel an inkling of respect for the man.

Then Kakashi met his team and met Naruto, and I knew he was thinking the exact same thing as me.

_It's a blond Obito._

Though, I must admit that I was disappointed when I realized how much Kakashi neglected his other two students in favor of Uchiha Sasuke. I can almost understand him neglecting Naruto. He most likely wanted to avoid the one person that reminded him of his loss so much. Sakura also had an uncanny resemblance to the late Rin, though she was not quite as calm as the other girl.

I could understand him focusing on the Uchiha to help him. The boy had lost his family, his entire _clan_ to his homicidal, not-completely-sane-but-completely-misunderstood brother, and had decided to become an Avenger; that he _was_ an Avenger (Whatever that meant. I don't think an Avenger is an actual _career choice_). I could see why Kakashi would focus on the Uchiha to try and keep him from walking down that particular road.

Just because I understood why he neglected them like did, that did not necessarily mean that I approved of it. I was disappointed in the man I thought was better than that.

When Kakashi failed to stop his revenge-seeking student, I watched as his carefully constructed mask cracked, then, piece by piece, slowly fell apart. He quickly built it back up again almost right away, but the fact of the matter is that his mask had shattered, and I had seen the man behind the facade.

And I had forgiven him.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_So, I really do hate typing Japanese words in a Word document. I wish it recognized foreign languages because all the red lines bother the hell out of me, so I read through my story three times before I deem it decent enough to not suck majorly when reading. I like to think I'm somewhat decent at grammar, so hopefully it's pretty easy to read. I hate stories with bad grammar, I'm constantly correcting them while I'm reading, and it totally ruins the story for me. Come on, people, ever heard of a beta? Or at least fix your grammar first, gosh. Also, Sasuke is a pain in the ass to type. I kept screwing up the k and the e. Ugh.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accept any kind.

(1) I got this line from a Naruto page on Wikipedia. I think it's called Narupedia, or something, but I haven't actually seen the Kakashi _Gaiden_ arc of the anime, so I got all my information from sites dedicated to that sort of thing. **I apologize if any information is incorrect.**

(2) Everywhere I checked said that it's never actually specified what happened to Rin after the war, and whatnot. So, I killed her. In the _Kyuubi _attack. I'm taking artistic license (I think that's what it's called) here, people, so deal with it.

(3) I got this last excuse from another fan-fiction, though I can't remember what it was called, I do recall enjoying it.

(4) This is not meant to be taken seriously. Do they even have coffee in the Naruto-verse? Anyway, it is meant to be metaphorical, but you can interpret it however you want.

**I apologize for any incorrect spellings and/or usage of Japanese terms.**


	3. An Examination

The third installment of the Study series. I'm not sure if I like this one very much. I had an idea in my head about what I wanted it to be like, but I don't think this one is quite up to par. It also is not as long as my other two studies. I don't know, I guess it's up to you to decide.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. It's very sad, I know, but I'll just have to get over that, won't I?

**WARNINGS!!: **Once more, ***SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS*** I like to **bold** things. I don't know why.

Enjoy.

* * *

An Examination

While studying the fascinating species of _shinobi_, I happened upon the _bijuu_.

There are nine tailed demons. You can tell the difference between them by the number of tails they have. The demons are physical manifestations of _chakra_, thus earning them the name, '_Chakra_ Monsters'. Because of this, the tailed beasts are incredibly powerful. However, because they have the mind-set of a beast, the demons do not have the intelligence needed to properly use their massive amounts of _chakra_.

The demons are as follows:

The _Ichibi no Shukaku_, or One-Tailed Raccoon.

The _Nibi no Bakeneko_, or Two-Tailed Monster Cat.

The _Sanbi no Kyodaigame_, or Three-Tailed Giant Turtle.

The _Yonbi no Saru_, or Four-Tailed Monkey.

The _Gobi no Irukauma_, or Five-Tailed Dolphin Horse.

The _Rokubi no Namekuji_, or Six-Tailed Slug.

The _Nanabi no Kabutomushi_, or Seven-Tailed Horned Beetle.

The _Hachibi no KyogyuI_, or Eight-Tailed Giant Ox.

The _Kyubi no Yoko_, or Nine-Tailed Demon Fox (1).

Each one was sealed inside a human container called a _Jinchuuriki_. While inside these vessels, the demons are granted the intelligence of a human, and it has been speculated that the demons even speak to their hosts (I have not yet found proof of such occurrences, but I do believe them to be true).

One of the tailed demons in particular caught my interest, the _Kyubi_. The demon fox is the most powerful out of all the tailed beasts, and I believe that because of this, the _Kyubi_ is also far more intelligent.

I had the honor and privilege of meeting the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox.

It was basking in the sunlight in a large patch of woods hundreds of miles out from the nearest hidden village.

When it first became aware of my presence, the _Kyubi_ had tried to kill me. After that failed, it seemed to realize that I was not a threat and sat back down, continuing its sun bathing.

I decided to join it.

We spent hours just lying there, basking in the warmth of the afternoon sun, not speaking a word to one another, not even looking at each other.

Finally, though, it began to speak.

The _Kyubi_ spoke of many things. A lot of the things I knew, but a lot more were new to me, and I found myself learning so many wonderful things.

It told me its age, which far exceeded my own of nearly six thousand (Five thousand, nine hundred and eighty-nine, to be precise). It told me about where it was born, how it was born, and its life as a _kit_, or baby fox.

It told me so much, but I decided not to write any of it down, for the _Kyubi_ had decided to confide in only me, and it seemed wrong to allow others to read about its past, instead of hearing it from the large demon, itself.

In return, I told the _Kyubi_ about my studies.

I told it about my observations on nature, and animals within nature; how everything seemed to work together perfectly. Nature and animals lived in harmony, and I found that it was a beautiful thing to watch. The _Kyubi _told me that it had never taken the time to watch nature and her inhabitants, content to just laze about, but after hearing what I had to say, decided that he would try it someday.

I told him about my studies of the _shinobi_. I told him that I had been surprised when I saw such young children killing without a care in the world.

I told him how it had taught me just how fragile a human life was; so much effort was put into bringing that human into the world, and so little effort was used to remove it. It showed me how truly _mortal_ the humans were.

It said that such a thing was to be expected of such an ugly species.

I agreed.

I cannot remember exactly how long the two of us stayed there, lying side-by-side. All I know is that by the time I had to leave, we had both gotten through our entire life stories. Before I left, I told him that we were 'comrades in age'. He had laughed (The laugh was so loud the trees around us shook), and with an incline of his head, agreed.

It was after this that I discovered _Konohagakure_, and began my study of the _shinobi_ there.

Several years later, the _Kyubi_ attacked the Village Hidden in the Leaves, killing hundreds of people, including the current _Yondaime_.

I was confused as to why the _Kyubi_ had attacked the village. When we had parted, the demon fox had held no animosity towards any of the _shinobi_, it simply liked to play with them on occasion (I found that its idea of 'play' differed quite a bit from the 'play' _shinobi_ thought of).

So, when I saw the fox attack the village, I had tried to go and speak with it (This was while it was taking a short break (2). I had no intention of interfering with the battle).

The _Kyubi_ had not recognized me at all. So, at the time, I had come to three different conclusions: the years had finally caught up to it and it had lost the last of its sanity, it was terribly bored and needed some excitement in its life, or someone was controlling it.

I never got the chance to figure it out. The _Yondaime_ sealed the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox in the body of his new-born son, sacrificing his life in the process.

It has been a while since that night occurred, and I have been focusing mainly on the fox's vessel, Naruto. Not only is the young boy interesting, he is also the container for a creature that I believe to be a comrade.

I have been waiting for the day when I can find out exactly why the _Kyubi_ attacked _Konohagakure_ that night.

My patience has been rewarded.

I found out recently that the _Kyubi_ attacked _Konohagakure_ because it was being controlled by the oldest Uchiha in existence, Madara.

My curiosity on the subject of _Kyubi _has been satisfied until the day something more interesting than it attempting to escape its vessel occurs (3).

_Until Next Time, _

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Okay, first things first, I am aware the the tenses change. I did that on purpose. Hopefully it doesn't make the story as terrible as I think it is. I got all my information on the tailed beasts from Narutopedia, which is actually quite helpful. There was so much more detail that I could go into, but for the sake of my brain, decided not to. I'm sick at the moment, so I'm running on Tylenol and a few hours of sleep, so my brain isn't exactly at its best. The demons' names pissed me off, they're too damn complicated, so **please forgive any misspellings**.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accept any kind.

(1) My spelling for _Kyubi_ has apparently been wrong, which is quite disappointing. On the site, it was spelled with just one 'u' instead of the two that I kept putting in there. Argh!

(2) Okay, I'm taking more artistic licensing here. I know the _Kyubi_ probably didn't take a break, but for the sake of my story, it did, okay?

(3) That sounds like a run-on sentence to me...is it? I've never been too good at telling the difference, and I always forgo spell check because I don't want to have to go through all the Japanese words and the many different spellings just to see the right way to word that sentence.


	4. An Investigation

Okay, here's the fourth installment of the Study series. This time it's all about Itachi (_evil genus_'s suggestion). This one has so much more information than my previous studies. The Uchiha clan had so much politics and crap going on that reading through all the information took just as long as typing the damn story up.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. I want a _Kyuubi_, though, or a Gamakichi(?). Naruto belongs to its creators, damn it.

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS*** honestly, if this warning is keeping you from reading the story, read the manga. You can read it online if you don't want to buy it (, or ).

Enjoy.

* * *

An Investigation

For some reason, I have always found the Uchiha clan to be a bit…annoying (1). They were a prideful, arrogant group of train-aholics with no respect towards anyone that was not an Uchiha, or up to their standards.

And their standards were set very high.

Before I began studying Hatake Kakashi, I watched the Uchiha clan go about their daily lives. The average Uchiha _shinobi_ spent more time training and perfecting their _jutsus_, _taijutsus_, _genjutsus_, etc. than even the most diligent non-Uchiha _shinobi_. It was because of their stringent schedules that the Uchiha clan's _shinobi_ were considered faster and stronger than most other _shinobi_. They were also extremely proficient in fire _jutsus_. The Uchiha clan's _shinobi_ were hailed as geniuses.

Just watching them was exhausting.

Of course, another reason the Uchiha clan believed itself to be 'better' than everyone else was because of their _kekkei genkai_, or bloodline limit.

The _Sharingan_, unlike the _Byakugan_ of the Hyuga clan, was not activated at birth. Instead, if an Uchiha wanted to get the _Sharingan_, they would have to suffer from an extremely stressful or emotional state of mind that would literally force the _Sharingan_ to manifest (I believe that the _Sharingan_ can only be manifested through desperation and need; as in, an Uchiha must be at his limit before it will first be activated). After the first manifestation of the _Sharingan_, the user can activate it at will, freely.

The actual mechanics of how the _Sharingan _works are not available to me, as the Uchiha clan is very stingy when it comes to their secrets. They refuse to allow anyone outside of their clan to know about how the _Sharingan _works. The only reason I know how the bloodline limit is activated, is because I happened to be in the right place at the right time.

There are four major abilities that the _Sharingan_ grants its user. The first of which is the most well-known; it can copy anything it sees, from _taijutsu_ to _ninjutsu_. Once the moves have been copied, the user can perform them so long as they have the ability to do so. One who is terribly weak in _taijutsu_ would not be able to perform a move copied from a master.

The second ability the _Sharingan _grants its user is an enhanced perception. I'm not entirely sure what this means, though I can assume that it helps them see _chakra_ easier (Though not quite as easily as the _Byakugan_). It also makes them far more observant, allowing them to notice subtle things that they normally wouldn't pay attention to.

Seeing _chakra_ flow is the third ability. Basically, it allows the user to see if the person they're looking at is under a _genjutsu_.

Hypnosis is the final ability. The _Sharingan_ allows its user to control the actions and decisions so long as they make eye contact with their opponent. When used with the other abilities, it can create the illusion that the user is reading their opponent's mind.

Of course, in my opinion, if one trains hard enough, they can do the same things the _Sharingan_ can. The bloodline limit is simply a faster, easier way to obtain those abilities.

Not that there is anything wrong with using whatever you've got, but the _Sharingan_ is a weapon. It is a tool that is to be used when you know you can't fight without it. It should only be used as a last resort, but, sadly, the Uchiha clan, just like the Hyuga clan, focuses mainly of manifesting their bloodline limits. Once they have the limit, they use it; a lot.

And they wonder why so many of them had eye problems. Idiots.

Some of them, however, were not as stupid as I originally thought. One such Uchiha was a young boy by the name of Itachi.

Itachi was born to be a _shinobi_. He was naturally adept at everything, and could accomplish anything he put his mind to.

Even with the high standards of the Uchiha clan, Itachi far exceeded any other Uchiha.

Uchiha Itachi was a genius amongst geniuses.

At the young age of four, Itachi had already witnessed the deaths of so many people, traumatizing him into becoming a pacifist. The Third Great _Shinobi_ World War was indeed a tragic event.

At age seven, Itachi joined the _shinobi _academy, and after only one year, graduated at the top of his class.

At age eight, he had _mastered_ the _Sharingan_.

At age ten, he passed the _Chunin _Exams.

At age thirteen, he became the captain of the ANBU.

A genius.

Itachi had a little brother named Sasuke, whom he loved and showed great affection for (The boys' father showed only marginal interest in the young Sasuke, while most of his attention was focused on his prodigy of a son, Itachi).

Soon, the Uchiha clan began to plan to overthrow _Konohagakure_. Itachi, as an ANBU, was charged with spying on the village to prevent a coup d'etat that would lead the world into another war. Instead, Itachi decided to spy on his own clan, reporting all his findings to the _Sandaime_ and the council of elders (A group of old fools, if you ask me).

However, Itachi began acting differently and was suspected of the murder of his best friend, Uchiha Shisui. Itachi's father lost interest in his elder son, and decided to focus on the young Sasuke.

The _Sandaime_ wanted to negotiate a bloodless end to the hostilities between the two parties, but Danzo and the council went behind his back and ordered Itachi to wipe out his clan.

A few days before Itachi planned on wiping out his clan, he met Uchiha Madara, who had been planning on destroying _Konohagakure_. In return for keeping the village safe, Itachi told the other Uchiha that he would kill all the Uchihas if only Madara would leave the village alone. Madara agreed (The man seemed to hold a large grudge against the Uchiha clan, though I have no way of knowing why).

So, in order to protect the entire village, Itachi killed every Uchiha except one; his little brother, Sasuke. At the time, he had told his little brother to hate him and become stronger, but I could see that the reason Itachi didn't kill Sasuke was because he loved his little brother more than the village.

Before becoming a traitor, Itachi begged the _Sandaime_ and the council to let his brother live and become a _shinobi_. He even threatened Danzo.

Itachi eventually moved on to _Akatsuki_, a group that is far too complicated for me to care about. He left _Konohagakure_, thus my interest in him faded. Naruto was now my main case study.

However, before he left, I did observe enough of the genius Uchiha to have a small understanding of his personality.

Itachi was dedicated to _Konohagakure_ and his little brother. From what I could tell, he only put up with his family _because_ of Sasuke. I'm sure that was why he really had no problems spying on his own clan.

As an ANBU captain, Itachi was respected by his subordinates and comrades. He was a strong ally who could be relied on, and was always great to have watching your back.

I can honestly say that out of all the Uchihas, Itachi was by far the only one I respected. He never allowed the praise and almost-worship get to his head, and continued to do what was best for what he loved.

Itachi could be compared to Hatake Kakashi. Their personalities are actually quite similar. Underneath their stoic masks of calm determination and cool indifference, a miasma of emotions swirled about.

Itachi was kind yet cold. He was powerful yet weak. He was smart yet stupid. He was loved yet hated. He was content (Not happy; never happy after what he had lived through) yet sad. Itachi, like Naruto, was full of contradictions. His clashing personality made it difficult to truly try and understand him, but I like to think that underneath it all, Itachi was a good person.

He is dead now; killed by his own brother (I actually witnessed the fight between the brothers, and I can say that at the end, Itachi was happy, especially if his smile was anything to go by). I am truly saddened that such a great _shinobi_ is gone. Hopefully, wherever he is, it's far better than here.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_

Oh dear, my head hurts. Does yours? All that information...ugh. Hopefully it wasn't too boring, I mean, I actually found reading about this stuff interesting, so hopefully you will, too. I still hate typing Sasuke's name, and I'm not sure how to make Japanese words plural, so i just added an 's' to the end. I hope that doesn't turn you away from my writing.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accept any kind.

(1) Sorry, I'm inserting my own opinion here. But I can't help it. The Uchiha clan just pissed me off. I hated their personalities, the stuck-up little bastards.


	5. Interlude: Suggestions?

Suggestions

Does anyone have any suggestions for who they would like me to study next? I was thinking of Sakura or Sasuke, but I want your opinions. I forgot to put it in the Author's Note, and I didn't feel like fixing it.


	6. A Dissertation

Okay, this one is a lot shorter than my previous ones, and this is mostly due to the fact that there is a hell of a lot less information and observations in this one. It's all about Gai, people, oooh yeah. Anyway, this one is definitely more on the humorous side; I think it's impossible to be truly serious when talking about _Gai_ of all people.

Disclaimer: I do not own. Gai freaks the crap out of me. So does Orochimaru with that creepy-ass tongue thing of his. Sasuke is also an angsty bitch and will continue to be so. If I owned it, I'd have gotten Naruto to convince him to GET THE FUCK OVER IT! Okay, I'm done. ^-^

**WARNINGS!!: Not so much spoilers as a couple bad words. I don't _think_ there are any spoilers in this chapter, but, just in case, *SPOILERS MAYBE***

Enjoy.

* * *

A Dissertation

In all my time observing _shinobi_, I have never once encountered such a terrifying sight as I did not too long ago.

Before I continue, however, allow me to say that I have seen many things. I have seen many dark, nightmare-inducing terrors that would scar most people for life, never allowing them a single night of sleep without fears. It is because of these things that I have seen that it takes quite a sight to truly frighten me.

I saw such a sight several years ago.

Its name was Gai.

Naruto and his fellow _gennin_ had just entered the _Chuunin_ Exam, and were taking their written test, something I had absolutely no interest in (Honestly, watching children attempt a test that didn't even need to be attempted is not as appealing as one might think).

So, in an attempt to prevent boredom, I decided to watch the _gennin_ teams' teachers.

I wish I'd just stuck to watching the test.

All the _jounin_ instructors were lounging around, talking amongst one another about meaningless things; the weather (In my studies, I have come to realize that the weather is _always_ brought up when one does not know what to say), who's killed whom recently, and other things of the sort. It was all rather droll.

Then, a loud voice could be heard, screaming something along the lines of, "YOUTH!"

After looking around for the source and not finding it, I turned back to the group of _jounin_ and have to admit that the shock and utter _terror_ on their faces unnerved me just a tad bit. Even Kakashi, who had taken to reading a porn book called _Icha Icha Paradise_ while performing everyday tasks (And not so every day, like when he was 'testing' Naruto and his team), had dropped the book, the soft _thump_ being the only sound that penetrated the thick silence, and his single visible eye had widened to a size I wasn't aware was possible to achieve.

A voice from the back, a _jounin_ I did not care to recognize, whispered a shaky, "Gai."

The name caused a shudder to ripple throughout the _jounin_ in the room.

The "YOUTH!" came closer, louder, and the group of terrified _jounin_ sprang into action with only one thing apparent on their minds; _Get the fuck out of here_!

In their combined attempt to escape the coming danger, the _jounin_ tripped over one another, crashing to the ground in a tangled heap, their entwined limbs making it impossible to get up. I saw one or two escape through the window before the thing that everyone feared came bursting through the door.

It was tall.

It was huge.

It had a bowl cut.

It wore green.

Green spandex.

_Green. Spandex_.

It was a black-haired, bowl-cut styled, green spandex wearing _monster_.

And it was by far the most terrifying thing I have ever seen.

It screamed, "YOUTH!" one more time before striking an odd pose; a wide grin with a sparkle for effect, and a 'thumbs up' sign.

Suddenly, the Green Monster turned to Kakashi and yelled something about an 'eternal rival' (At this point in time, I had become so traumatized that I tuned out everything that was going on around me. I apologize for my utter failure for recording the happenings, but if you ever meet the Green Monster, _you will understand_).

I came to several hours later when I realized that my current subject was no longer testing, and went to go focus on him.

It was not too long afterwards that I became aware of Green Monster Jr., an almost exact copy of its predecessor.

I came to a decision at that point in time: _keep away from Green Monster, and Green Monster Jr._

Of course, now, I still hear shouts of "YOUTH!" from the far reaches of the village, and Naruto does occasionally meet with Green Monster Jr., so, in an effort to protect myself from the terror of _Konohagakure_'s Green Beast, I have trained my mind to shut down as soon as I hear, "YOU-". By the third letter, I am no longer consciously aware of what is going on around me.

From what I have heard, the Green Monsters are both incredibly powerful _taijutsu_ users, and spend the majority of their days simply training. Apparently, they are both very adept fighters, even with their lack of _chakra_ use (I have no idea as to why the two monsters don't use _chakra_ as I have never had any desire to study them).

I apologize for the lack of information and observations of the Green Monster duo (Anything I have heard has been through word of mouth), but I simply cannot study such a terrifying thing.

Please excuse my language, but, if I were to honestly describe the Green Monster and his minion, I would have only two words for you: mind fuck.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Okay. A lot less serious than the other chapters. Hopefully it wasn't too bad. Now, this one I didn't actually do any research on, so sue me. I'm sorry if I got anything wrong, but this was more about Ai's experience with _meeting_ Gai then actually taking an interest in him and recording what Ai observes. Sorry if it's not what you expected, but I had fun writing, er, typing it. I hope you had fun reading it.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accept any kind.


	7. A Cogitation

Wow, a lot shorter. Okay, I know that I was asked to do one about an individual, but I wanted to get this idea out of my head. IT WOULDN'T LEAVE ME ALONE! Anyway, this is way shorter than my others, but hopefully it's alright. This was kind of a rush job since I had to finish it before I went to school or else it'd bother the shit out of me.

Disclaimer: I don't own it, people, if I did, things would be so much different.

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS*** I always read things even if there are spoilers. ^_^ Oh, also, **LANGUAGE**, once or twice.

Enjoy.

* * *

A Cogitation

Over the many years that I have studied _shinobi_, and most recently, _Konohagakure shinobi_, I have come to the realization that, especially in _Konohagakure_, young _gennin_ work in teams. They actually spend the better part of their childhood with two other _gennin_, and an instructor.

It is when I came to this realization that I began noticing Naruto's team.

The team consisted of three people, including Naruto, plus an instructor. The other two _gennin_ were a Haruna Sakura and an Uchiha Sasuke (A depressed little brat if I ever saw one (1)). The instructor was my old case study, Hatake Kakashi.

While the team, excluding the fact that Naruto was a _jinchuuriki_, Sasuke was the last Uchiha, and Kakashi was the Copy-Nin (Using the _Sharingan_ like an Uchiha, though I must admit that he does only resort to using it when he has no choice in the matter, which I commend him for), was relatively normal, the dynamics of the team were something else.

There were so many things going on between the members of the team that all the notes I took ended up using four pages. I will not bore you with _all_ the observations I made, but I will explain to you a few that I found…interesting, I suppose.

The first thing I noticed was the love triangle that was not a love triangle, nor was there any actual love floating around in the air like so many love triangles I've seen seemed to have. No, instead, it was a misshapen _thing_ that also included Kakashi and not just the _gennin_.

Sakura, a freakishly bi-polar girl whose sanity I am concerned for, was '_in love_' with the Uchiha. According to her, he was the handsomest, smartest and coolest _shinobi_ in the entire village (She wasn't the only one to think this. I have seen many women actually near-faint when he walked by. It was quite disturbing). So, whenever she saw Avenger Boy, large hearts would appear in her eyes (I have actually seen this occurrence before. There really were hearts), and she would babble on and on about completely inane topics that the Uchiha would completely ignore, and she would be totally unaware of the fact that he was paying no attention to what she was saying (I almost felt bad for the girl. Almost).

Then you had Naruto, who, like Sakura, was '_in love_'. No, with the Uchiha, but '_in love_' with Sakura. This included her second personality, the Bitch, as I like to call it. He would practically _beg_ for the pink-haired girl's attention, and, when he never got it, his entire demeanor would change from happy and excited to not-as-happy and not-as-excited; his smiles wouldn't be as wide, and his eyes wouldn't be as bright.

Because Sakura paid more attention to the Uchiha, Naruto's first love seemed more like an obsession, and it was because of Sakura's own obsession with Sasuke that the rivalry sprang up between the two boys.

Naruto, in an effort to gain Sakura's undying love and respect, decided to make Sasuke his rival so he could surpass him and impress Haruna. At first.

Sasuke, on the other hand, absolutely refused to acknowledge the _jinchuuriki_'s efforts to beat him and instead concentrated on his revenge.

This, in turn, changed Naruto's goal from, 'Surpass the Bastard to Impress Sakura' to, 'Make the Bastard Acknowledge My Strength'.

Sasuke, however, didn't _want_ to acknowledge Naruto. If he did, then that would mean admitting the 'dead last' of the class was on par with him, and if that were the case, then that meant he was far too weak to take on his brother. If he was too weak to defeat the elder Uchiha, then he couldn't get revenge for his family.

During this love triangle that was not, Kakashi read his porn book and observed much the same I do. However, this was when he began focusing more on the Uchiha in an attempt to turn him away from his self-assigned duty of revenge. Naruto and Sakura were pushed to the side to give him more time to train Sasuke, and make him understand that everything he needed was in the village, and try and keep him from becoming a missing-nin in his quest for vengeance.

When Sasuke finally realized that Naruto was as strong as he was, he became scared that he wasn't improving fast enough. If the 'dead last' was level with him, just how weak was he? So, in an effort to become stronger, he decided to leave the village.

When Naruto went after him, Sasuke punched a hole through the blond boy's chest, nearly killing him. It was when Sasuke was sitting over Naruto's unconscious form that I realized the Uchiha had finally acknowledged the _jinchuuriki_'s strength.

I found the irony in the situation rather amusing.

Now that Sasuke is gone, Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi have, in fact, become closer than they ever were. Without Sasuke there to distract Sakura, and without the Uchiha there to worry Kakashi, they could both focus on different things. Sakura put her childhood crush behind her and studied under the current _Hokage_, Tsunade. Kakashi could then focus on Naruto.

It makes one wonder.

If Sasuke had never been on Team 7, would things have turned out differently than they did?

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_So? What'd you think? It's a little different, I think, but hopefully not bad. I didn't read through this since I was in a hurry, so I apologize for any grammatical errors.

**Reviews are always appreciated**.

(1) Do Ai's thoughts in the parentheses bother anyone? Should I take them out?


	8. An Analysis

Woo, the I-don't-which installment! I actually had fun writing this, which I found surprising since I used to hate this character. evil genus suggested this character. Okay, I keep forgetting to say this, but now I'm gonna tell you: I'm leaving this story saying complete since I don't know if I'll actually keep writing more studies. I really only write them when I feel inspired, which is usually after I get a review or two or three or four or five or six or- okay, I think you get it. I didn't get a review for my last chapter, so I almost decided to just stop, but I did get a story alert, so I figured, 'what the hell' and just wrote this one up when I got bored. Don't expect more unless I get reviews, which I know is cruel, but reviews really are the only things that motivate me to continue.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I wish I did 'cause then I'd never have to work (I'd let the original owner and artist and whatever continue the thing, I'd just reap the rewards), and I could just chill and read fan fiction for the rest of my measly existence.

**WARNINGS!!: **I think...***SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS***, you know, I can't read the most recent chapter because my computer's being a dumb-ass and going all slow and shit, so the pages on onemanga load so slowly that I get frustrated and give up. *huffs* It's so annoying.

Enjoy.

* * *

An Analysis

After studying the species know as _shinobi_, I came to a realization: not very many women become the terrifyingly merciless creatures the men grow to be.

This doesn't mean that all _kunoichi_ are weak-hearted pushovers with no hope of becoming anything worthwhile in the _shinobi_ world; far from it, actually. Some _kunoichi_ are more terrifying than even the most dangerous male _shinobi_.

In fact, I saw a woman not too long ago take down eighty _shinobi_ with nothing but a broomstick she had broken over her knee. She danced through the mass of killers with a grace so beautiful and mesmerizing I found I couldn't take my eyes off her. The duel-wielded sticks _cracked_ against skulls, arms and torsos, splitting skin and breaking bone, leaving near-death, death and blood in their wake. Her brown hair flew around her as she spun and ducked and jumped with so much speed and power that the strands snapped out at faces like a whip, leaving behind lines of red.

The entire battle was over in less than five minutes.

Oh no, _kunoichi _are most definitely not weak, this I know.

However, that doesn't change the fact that a lot of the female _shinobi_ take on less dangerous jobs, or jobs that don't involve killing; jobs like researching, teaching, or healing.

Medical-_nin_, I find, are probably the most important aspect to a _shinobi_ village. Without the healers mending bone, repairing tissue and closing gaping wounds, _shinobi_ would not live to fight and kill another day.

Without the healers, far more people would have died the day the _kyuubi_ attacked.

When I first saw a Medical-_nin_ heal a fallen _shinobi_, I thought to myself, '_This entire species is full of contradictions_.'

Instructors teach, shoveling information into young and old minds alike.

Interrogators steal information, most always through…unkind means.

Healers give life.

Killers take life away.

It is because of these many opposing factors, I became even more fascinated by the creatures called _shinobi_.

xXx

Naruto's team consisted of himself, Kakashi and two other young _gennin_; Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura (1).

After glancing over Sasuke and finding him predictable and uninteresting, my eyes fell upon a head of bright pink hair trying, in vain I might add, to cover a large forehead, and framing a face with large, bright green eyes.

Of course, at the moment, the pink-haired, green-eyed girl with the largest forehead I had ever seen was staring at the Uchiha. Her pale-green eyes were focused on the boy with a fierce intensity that I had so far only seen in the eyes of merciless killers and intimidating mothers; there was even a line of drool dripping down her chin.

And I thought, _'Incredible. It's an honest-to-God _fan-girl_.'_

I found her immediately amusing, having never actually seen a fan-girl before.

After Kakashi put the _gennin_ through his little test, I became even more amused with the girl. The pink-haired _kunoichi_ had panicked when the single-eyed _jounin_ used a _genjutsu_ on her, convincing the love-struck child that her crush was hurt. She fell for the manipulation, and she fell for it _hard_. Her scream actually echoed across the village, and I even saw a few _shinobi_ start in her direction before remembering that Kakashi was 'testing' his _gennin_ in that area.

After they passed the test (They were incredibly lucky, if you ask me. They hadn't truly understood the point of the test until _after_ Kakashi told them, and that was because they didn't want to watch young Naruto starve), I found myself wanting to know how this team would turn out with an attention-seeking orphan, stuck-up 'prodigy' and love-struck fan-girl.

Of course, I realized right from the start that if Sakura wanted to become a good _shinobi_, she'd have to either get over her little crush, or tone it down.

Even after all the years I've lived and all the understanding and patience I learned from those many years, I still found her utter devotion to the Uchiha brat, while very sweet, annoying.

Whenever my charge would try to ask his crush out, she'd turn him down instantaneously without even considering the idea. When the young _jinchuuriki_ insulted his rival (Who always insulted the boy right back), the _kunoichi_ would snap at him, scolding the blond for _daring_ to insult 'Her Sasuke'.

This brings me to another fact about Sakura that I found rather…interesting.

The girl is bi-polar; I know this for a fact.

She has two distinct personalities that, on occasion, overlap with one another.

Her outer persona, the one she is known for, is that of a sweet, young, compassionate girl with a crush on a dark, mysterious, handsome boy. This personality is seen the most, it being her default attitude.

Her inner persona is a bitch, to tell you the truth. The person Sakura is inside her head is the complete and total opposite of the person she is on the outside. Where the outer is kind, the inner is cruel. While the outer is compassionate towards others, the inner is hateful, almost. If the outer wants to give something away, the inner wants to keep it to herself.

I can honestly say that I was impressed by her ability to keep the two different personas separate. Though, around Naruto, her control seemed to shatter, and the inner Sakura came out to play with the outer Sakura.

These were the times when she physically and/or verbally abused young Naruto. These were the times when Sakura truly acted like _Sakura_.

I was rather impressed with the _kunoichi_ when, in the Forest of Death (A ridiculous name if I ever heard one, and I have heard some truly ridiculous names), she protected both the Uchiha and Naruto at the risk of her own life. In the process, her long, in-the-way pink hair was chopped off.

Despite her fear, the soon-to-be Medic-_nin_ stood her ground and defended her teammates.

That was the day Sakura became a _shinobi_.

Later, when Sasuke decided to become a traitor and throw everything his friends had ever done for him back in their faces, Sakura asked Naruto to make a promise he would never be able to keep. It was because of this that I began to dislike her a small bit.

However, after Naruto's two year training period with the pervert know as Jiraiya (2), I returned to the village to see a young woman who had gotten over her crush and had moved on to become a formidable _kunoichi_ with an unstoppable fist and a calculating mind.

Sakura, under the intense tutelage of Tsunade, became a Medic-_nin_.

Not only did she become an incredible healer with a punch that shook the earth, Sakura had also obtained a sharp mind with the intelligence to rival most scholars and determination on par with Naruto's own.

Her strength and intelligence weren't the only things that changed under Tsunade's instruction. Sakura had also found a balance within her own mind. Both her inner and outer Sakura harmonized with one another, creating a Sakura that, while still flawed, was an asset instead of the liability she had been.

While I no longer have her fan-girl insanity to entertain me, I still have the honor to witness the young woman's use of her massive strength against perverts and Naruto.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Whew! Another one done. This one wasn't as short as my previous two. I like Sakura a helluva lot more now than I did before the time skip. She was such a _pansy_! She got on my nerves so much!

**Reviews are always appreciated**, really, they are. They give me the fuel to keep going. They are the equivalent to coffee. They're the pot of gold waiting at the end of the rainbow (I tried to find the end once, not to get the pot of gold, but to meet a Leprechaun. I never did find it...)

(1) I totally realized that I spelled Sakura's last name wrong all last chapter. Son of a bitch! Oh, and you know your memory sucks when you can't remember why you put a note next to something.

(2) Was it two or three years? I was too damn lazy to look it up. And does anyone realize that not much is really told about Sakura's family? Sasuke's had, like, twenty episodes, Naruto's is kind of understandable (The kid's an orphan, what family? Now we know, though, anyone who couldn't see the resemblance Naruto and the _Yondaime_ had is a blind idiot.), but Sakura's is just kind of...ignored. I think, at least. Maybe I just missed that arc, or something...


	9. A Regard

You can thank _evil genus_ and _Green Cloud_ for this update (evil reviewed, like always I love you! and Cloud name of my fav. character in FFVII! alerted me. Hells yeah!). I got the review, read it, and was like EPIPHANY, and this little baby popped out. I'm not too sure about this one, though I can honestly say that I like it. It's a little different, so I hope it's to your liking.

Disclaimer: I wish.

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS*** Whenever a story warns about **spoilers**, I read it anyway. I just really don't care. I hate surprises anyway, so spoil it for me, please.

Question: Does anyone actually read this stuff? I do, on occasion, when I read other people's fics, but that doesn't mean anyone else does.

Enjoy.

* * *

A Regard

* * *

In all my years of living I have come across many people who have strived to obtain the unobtainable.

The most strived-for thing, I have noticed, is immortality.

It seems that nearly every person has a deep desire to live forever and for all eternity. It appears that no human ever wants to die; no human wants to be mortal.

Idiots, the lot of them.

I can tell you from experience that immortality is not as great as it's made out to be. Once you stop aging, you will never physically change, ever. You will forever remain whatever age you stopped aging at.

As you continue to live, you will be forced to watch everyone and everything you have come to love grow old without you, live without you…die without you, leaving you behind to suffer and continue living through that pain.

You will watch the children of your friends have their own children, raise them into responsible adults, let them move out and give birth to their own children, who, in turn, grow up and have their own children in a never-ending cycle that just keeps going and going and going, leaving you to watch from behind, forgotten, as time moves forward for everyone but you.

The lands will groan and shift, the lakes and rivers will flood and drain, plants will grow and die, cliffs will crumble, erode and form, and seasons will come and go right before your eyes.

And you, you will still remain the same.

Humans fear death? Death isn't something to be afraid of. Death is the end of one cycle and the beginning of another. Without death, there would be no reason to _live_. Without death, there is no life.

If you are immortal, you will _never_ die. There is no limit to how long you live, so you have no reason to do anything; you have no desire to live.

Why bother when you have all the time in the world?

When I happened upon _Konohagakure_, I did not arrive in time to study the specimen named Orochimaru. I only heard of him and his experiments through word of mouth, and not from the most reliable sources; drunks whose minds were too clouded to know when they had said too much and whose tongues were too loose to care.

From what I gathered, Orochimaru was the student of the current _Hokage_, Sarutobi. His teammates and fellow _gennin_ were Jiraiya and Tsunade (1). After the Second Great _Shinobi_ World War (Why anyone would call a **war**_ great_ is beyond me), the three students of the _Sandaime_ were christened the Legendary Three _Sannin_, named so by a Hanzo of _Amegakure_ who'd been impressed that they had been able to survive a fight with him.

From a young age, Orochimaru was hailed as a prodigy, said to have talents, knowledge and determination seen only once every generation (2).

I find it ironic that most all of the so-called 'prodigies' end up betraying their respective villages (3).

One drunken man had said, "_Orochimaru ha' always been a creepy ba –hic – stard. Always used ta remin' me of a snake, ya know?_"

From what else I could gather, it seemed that Orochimaru had a strange likeness and affection for snakes that not only influenced his appearance, but also his _ninjutsu_; he apparently had a number of snake-related techniques. Even his summons related to his snake affinity, it being a large snake by the name of Manda.

When I followed Naruto and Jiraiya on their journey for the next _Hokage_, I had the opportunity to see Orochimaru with my own eyes, and could finally stop trying to conjure a mental picture of a man that looked and acted like a snake; a man with a long tongue and a flexible body that practically slithered when he walked, and slitted (4) eyes that, when focused on you, made you feel like you were being hunted.

My imagination was better than I thought.

A man with black hair, slits for eyes, a long – admittedly creepy – tongue, and an incredibly flexible body; a voice that _hissssed _when he spoke and skin as dry and cool as a reptile's; a snake in everything but blood (Though, with his strange love for the cold-blooded, overgrown worms, I wouldn't put it past him to have actually injected himself with snake blood).

He really was a,"…_creepy ba – hic – stard._"

Soon after, I learned that he sought immortality.

Of course, by then he'd already obtained pseudo-immortality, but it was a disgusting technique. Once I learned of this, I decided to observe the immortal wannabe for a short period of time.

In order to maintain his '_immortality_', Orochimaru had to make many modifications to his body, changing his 'true form' to that of a large, white, snake-like _thing_ (Some may call it a snake, but it is neither snake nor human. At least that's what I believe, and you wouldn't be reading this if you didn't care about my opinion, correct?) composed of many smaller snakes.

This form had many advantages, despite being utterly revolting. He could stretch any part of his body he wanted to, making him _very _flexible and capable of avoiding almost anything thrown at him. He could also use the many snakes that made up his body for attacks. Besides that, he could regenerate any wound he received.

The actual technique he used to stay 'immortal' was called Living Corps Reincarnation. He basically transferred his soul from the body he had been living in to a new body, showing his true form in the process; he did so by swallowing the new body and transferring its current inhabitant to a dimension within his body where he could absorb them, thus giving him complete control of the new habitat. He modified the new body to his snake-theme by stretching and bending his body and shedding his skin to heal injuries.

Orochimaru had to switch bodies every three years when the body he was taking residence in began to reject him. The owners of all the bodies he took control of would continue to reside deep within his subconscious until his 'dying' day.

So, in a way, I suppose Orochimaru was immortal.

Part of me understands why mankind seeks immortality. They don't want to grow old – like Tsunade who used a technique to keep herself looking young – and waste away year by year, rotting from the outside in. They don't want to leave the world behind; they have too many regrets, too many things to do, too many people to watch over, too many, too many.

Another part of me, the part that aches with a pain so deep no amount of medicine and rest and healing techniques can soothe it, and an emptiness so hollow no amount of _anything_ can fill it, just _can'tcan'tcan't_ understand why someone would want such a lonely, terrifying, painful, **cruel** thing.

Why would anyone want to live a life so long you actually _witness_ evolution? Who would want to live so long only a _demon_ can understand your pain?

Mortals fear death. I don't, and I will never have to.

Instead, I fear immortality. I fear a life that never ends, and a death that never comes.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Woo hoo, another done. So, what did you think? Was it good, bad, or in-between? This one seemed to focus a little on both Ai and Orochimaru (creepiest fucking bastard I have ever seen *shivers*). I really hope it didn't sound ridiculous.

As always, **reviews are appreciated**, and I can't write without them (which I feel really bad for. Honestly, I wish I had an infinite amount of motivation, but I just don't. I'm a seriously lazy, unambitious person who likes reading and sleeping). Would you review if I told you I need them to survive? **I'm bleeding out, people, for every review I get, another pint of blood is put back into my body! **Don't let me die...please? I know, I'm a review whore, so sue me.

(1) Why don't these three have last names? Seriously, all they're ever introduced by is their first name. It's _weird_. It's like, before they're study under Sarutobi, their lives didn't matter. This is excluding Tsunade who is the granddaughter of the First _Hokage_ and the grandniece of the Second _Hokage_. Still never says her last name, though...

(2) As weird as it sounds, Orochimaru was freaking _adorable_ as a kid. Oh muh gosh, when I saw a picture of him, I actually started cooing, it was freaking creepy, man. It's here, yo: http://naruto(dot)wikia(dot)com(slash)wiki(slash)Orochimaru *coos*

(3) Has no one else realized this? I mean, seriously? All the prodigal geniuses ended up going AWOL. Wtf is up with that?

(4) Slitted is apparently not a word, but I am taking the English language into my own hands and making it a word, damn it.

Oh, apparently neither is 'strived'. But nothing else sounded good, so I don't really care. Oh, I got the time-skip wrong in the previous chapter, it was two and a half years, not just two. Oops, my bad. Oh again, I'd like to thank narutopedia for their wonderful help in learning me about the pasts of the characters in Naruto. It's all very fascinating.


	10. A Contemplation

Next installment, here we are. Thank _Green Cloud _for this one.

Disclaimer: Nope. I don't own Naruto and I never will, sadly.

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS***

Enjoy.

* * *

A Contemplation

* * *

After watching the _shinobi_ of _Konohagakure_ for an extended period of time, I came to realize one interesting fact: Team 7 is cursed.

Now, I can understand that some, if not all, of my readers may or may not believe in the supernatural. I, however, do; being immortal and meeting demons makes it difficult for one _not _to believe.

Anyway, all of the Team 7's I have come across in _Konohagure_ – three to be precise – have all ended in either death or betrayal. No team followed by the number seven has ever stayed together that I know of.

First, Team Sarutobi (1), with Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru.

Second, Team Minato, with Obito, Rin, and Kakashi.

Third, Team Kakashi, with Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke (2).

In Team Sarutobi's case, Orochimaru betrayed them and the village, and Tsunade soon left to become a drunken gambler, while Jiraiya went on to become a perverted author and Informant for _Konohagakure_.

In Team Minato's case, Obito, Rin, and Minato died, leaving Kakashi as the only survivor.

In Team Kakashi's case, Sasuke defected, leaving both the village and his team in an attempt to become stronger so he could exact his revenge on his elder brother, Itachi, by joining Orochimaru. Naruto left on a training trip with Jiraiya, and Sakura became one of Tsunade's apprentices (3).

In the end, none of the teams stayed whole, making the curse of Team 7 that much more believable.

xXx

As was the case with Orochimaru, I did not arrive in time at _Konohagakure_ to study Team Sarutobi, though now I wish I had been able to, for it would have been quite an…experience.

However, unlike Orochimaru, Jiraiya was still a member of the Village Hidden in the Leaves and was thus a lot easier to obtain information for.

As a child, Jiraiya was so similar to Naruto that had Jiraiya died, I'd have believed Naruto to be his reincarnation.

One of the major differences between the future _jinchuuriki_ and Jiraiya was the fact that Jiraiya, even as a child, was a major pervert. It may also be said that the young _Sannin_ was damn proud of that fact.

Anyway, Jiraiya was the clown of his team; the dead last. Orochimaru believed him to be an idiot and Jiraiya believed Orochimaru to be a stiff, arrogant bastard (Similar to the relationships between Naruto and Sasuke, and Obito and Kakashi).

This did not mean that Jiraiya was useless as a _shinobi_. The soon-to-be Toad Sage was simply a lot more laid-back than the rest of his team, and believed that _shinobi_ shouldn't always be so serious.

Before the war, Jiraiya left the village for a short period of time to travel the world. It was on this journey that Jiraiya encountered the residence of the toads, a species he proved to have a natural affinity for. This is how he became the Toad Sage.

Jiraiya later proved himself to be a very capable _shinobi_ in the Second Great _Shinobi_ World War; he and his fellow teammates all received the nickname, The Legendary Three _Sannin_.

After the war, Jiraiya became a _jounin_ and took on his own team of _gennin_, one of which being the young Namikaze Minato.

Years later, Orochimaru betrayed the village. Jiraiya, in an attempt to bring his 'friend' back, chased after and fought the snake _sannin_.

He lost.

Soon after, Jiraiya came to understand that Orochimaru would never come back and decided to dedicate his time watching the snake's movements.

A few years before that, however, Jiraiya had finished his first book, The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy _Shinobi_ that didn't sell well at all. Minato, on the other hand, loved the book, and he and his wife, Uzumaki Kushina, decided to name their future son Naruto. This, in turn, made Jiraiya Naruto's Godfather.

Years later, when Naruto was born and a _gennin_, Jiraiya took the young blond with him to find the fifth _Hokage_, Tsunade. With Naruto's help, they convinced the drunken gambler to come back to the village and become the _Gondaime_ (4).

After Sasuke's defection, Jiraiya took Naruto on a two-and-a-half year training stint.

Not too long after that, Jiraiya was killed by the 'head' of _Akatsuki_, Pein, who I later found was the inspiration for Jiraiya's first book; the one that didn't sell so well.

Jiraiya was not a complicated man. He was simple and straight-forward, and didn't try to hide his faults. He was very strong, yes, but he, like any other _shinobi_, had weaknesses.

His largest fault was his weakness for women. Jiraiya was a major pervert, earning him the name _Ero Sennin_ by his Godson, Naruto. On his self-appointed, long-term mission as an Informant on _Akatsuki_ and Orochimaru, Jiraiya conducted 'research' for his best-selling series, _Icha Icha_.

This 'research' included spying on women while they bathed.

Jiraiya also like to show off. In the middle of a battle he would strike a pose, and, if he was interrupted, would get very offended.

However, despite all his faults, Jiraiya could be very perceptive. He was by no means stupid; he was the one who discovered that Naruto's _chakra_ flow had been disrupted by Orochimaru back during the _Chuunin_ Exams (5).

Jiraiya was a good _shinobi_; a little unorthodox, but that was what made him such a formidable opponent.

I hope, wherever he is now, Jiraiya is happy. God knows he deserves it.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Um, I'm not sure I like this one very much. I think it sucks. I really didn't get to study Jiraiya very much, since he never really caught my interest. I hope you don't hate it too much, and if I'm flamed, be nice about it please.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accept any kind.

(1) I'm not sure if Team Sarutobi (Hiruzen on Narutopedia) was a Team 7, but for this story, I'm making it one.

(2) Has anyone else realized just how alike those three teams were? I mean, the similarities are freaky. Jiraiya, Obito and Naruto; Tsunade, Rin and Sakura; Orochimaru, Kakashi and Sasuke - the only difference between these three was the fact that Kakashi didn't defect.

(3) I found this really funny for some reason. I mean, the 'dead last's ended up together, the arrogant traitor's ended up together, and the female's ended up together. Coincidence? I think not.

(4) Is it _Gondaime_ or _Godaime_?

(5) At least I think that's what he did. For some reason, I keep thinking that Orochimaru's little seal change affected Naruto's _chakra_ flow...am I right?

Jiraiya's name is a pain-in-the-ass to type.


	11. A Deliberation

My dear, loving readers, I bring you the next chapter in the series, A Study. I'm not sure how many more of these things I'm gonna be doing since I'm beginning to get low on characters to study. I mean, I'm not sure who to do a chapter on. Um, thank you for alerting this story. I appreciate it very much, however, I would absolutely **adore** it if I got reviews, as well.

Disclaimer: Ha. Haha. No.

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS***

Enjoy.

* * *

A Deliberation

* * *

Relationships between human beings never fail to confuse me. I, myself, have never actually had a real relationship with another _human_; the only times I have ever tried to communicate with a mortal being was when I had a question concerning something that I could not find through listening and watching. In my long career as a Chronicler, I have only had to ask something of a human three times. All three questions were for the same human, and they each involved a plant that only that human knew the whereabouts of.

I digress (1).

While studying the _shinobi_, and, more importantly, Naruto, I inadvertently began to observe how the species interacted with one another; how they acted around people they liked and around people they hated, how they responded to compliments and how they reacted to insults and threats, and so on so forth.

It was during these accidental observations that I began to unwillingly notice the last Uchiha, a boy by the name of Sasuke.

He and my current case study, Naruto had an odd sort of relationship. They both portrayed a serious dislike for the other, yet, they would both throw their lives away for their supposed rival.

It was a love-hate relationship that confused me to no end.

Perhaps this is because I don't understand the emotions a human uses as well as I understand a human's actual personality?

Anyway, because Naruto interacted so frequently with the Uchiha boy, I was forced to observe him as well.

I must say that because of my study on Uchiha Itachi and the Uchiha clan in general, I originally assumed the boy to be predictable and a waste of my time.

I was correct in my assumption.

Sasuke was an arrogant, stuck-up, depressed, vengeance-seeking little boy who was too absorbed in his own world to involve himself in the trivialities of socializing with people he believed to be 'under' him.

He was the epitome of everything the Uchiha clan stood for. It gave me reason enough to be mildly annoyed by him.

His goal in life was to kill the man who had wiped out his entire family. A man that was closer to him than his own father, a man who used to be the light in his world, a man he used to see as his brother; a man by the name of Uchiha Itachi.

Before Itachi when homicidal and murdered his entire clan, he and the young Sasuke had a very close relationship. Sasuke looked up to his elder brother who was a genius amongst geniuses, and could beat anyone he ever fought against. Itachi loved his younger brother quite a bit, taking the place of their father who cared more about Itachi's brilliance than Sasuke's average-for-an-Uchiha intelligence.

It was during this time that Sasuke smiled and enjoyed life. He had no cares in the world; so long as Sasuke had his elder brother, all would be right in the world.

Then Itachi committed genocide, and massacred the entire Uchiha clan, sans Sasuke, and, of course, himself.

After that, Sasuke became a reclusive, anti-social, average-for-an-Uchiha-but-brilliant-for-a-regular-_shinobi_ little boy who lived in a large, quiet compound all by himself.

I never liked spending time in that place. In my opinion, the silence was too loud.

It hurt my ears standing in that empty, _quiet_ area. I didn't know how Sasuke could handle it. I do admire his tenacity, though; I'd have gone insane long before he did.

At the _shinobi_ academy, Sasuke was commended for his genius. He was top of the class, seemingly with little effort on his part. Of course, if the other students and teachers knew the standards set in the Uchiha clan, they would have been able to tell that, for an Uchiha, Sasuke was rather average.

However, since the clan had been wiped out, no one knew, so Sasuke was perceived as a genius.

Sasuke let the praise get to his head.

He became arrogant and believed himself better than anyone who could not match him evenly in intelligence and physical prowess.

Then he met Naruto and his personality changed just a miniscule amount.

He was still arrogant, and a terrible jerk, but he opened up and spoke more, interacted with his peers, and even built tentative relationships.

It was Naruto's influence at its finest.

Sasuke's most prominent relationship was his one with Naruto. The two were like fire and ice; while one was bright and stubborn, the other was cold and unyielding.

Their personalities clashed like Naruto's outfit.

However, despite their differences, the two young _gennin_ made an incredibly powerful team. Once Sasuke obtained his _sharingan_, he could read Naruto's movements, and react accordingly, creating a deadly and graceful dance of power and intelligence.

Had Sasuke stayed, he would have grown quite strong alongside Naruto.

Sasuke, though, believed that he was not getting stronger fast enough, and that if Naruto, the dead last of his class, could fight on par with him, then he was far too weak. And if Sasuke was too weak, he would never be able to kill his brother and avenge his clan.

Everything for the boy was about vengeance, and that became his eventual downfall.

No, he's not dead. In fact, Sasuke eventually 'killed' Orochimaru then moved on to kill his brother. When he succeeded in doing so, he learned the truth; he learned exactly _why_ his brother had done what he'd done.

The Avenger had a purpose again; destroy _Konohagakure_.

In my opinion, had Sasuke decided to stick with Naruto, and continue training with the young _jinchuuriki_, he would have become monumentally stronger.

It was because Sasuke believed that he had to **hate** to become stronger.

It is my belief, through my observations of multiple fights, that one gains true strength from the need to _protect_.

I'm sure that if Sasuke had known this, he would have turned out to be a better person with many friends willing to protect him.

Or, he would have thought it ridiculous and continue on his path of self-destructive vengeance. While Sasuke may be very predictable, there are some things that not even I know.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Ugh, does it seem like I'm bashing on Sasuke in this chapter? Gosh, I sure hope not. I mean, the guy annoys the hell out of me, but Ai is supposed to be a neutral party, so I'm sorry if my opinion found its way into this chapter. My bad. I'm not entirely sure where I was going with this chapter...I don't think it's good. I think I'm losing my ability to write a good observation...oh man.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accepts any kind.

(1) I have always wanted to use this word. Now, I've used it in a writing context...next I have to use it in a real conversation, just to see what the other person will say.

Ohmuhgosh, I'm running out of synonyms for study! Ahhhhh!


	12. An Unforeseen Circumstance

Here ya go. This one's a bit different, so hopefully it's okay.

Disclaimer: How many times must I tell you? I don't, and never will, own Naruto. Gosh people, you'd think you know this by now!

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* **If you haven't realized that these chapters all have **spoilers** by now, then you're kind of dumb, and I feel sorry for you.

I was listening to Man On the Run by Dash Berlin, Cerf, Mitiska and Jaren while I wrote this. Just go to Youtube and type in Man On the Run. I don't know, I just think it kind of goes with this chapter, for some reason, plus, it's a really cool song.

Enjoy.

* * *

An Unforeseen Circumstance

* * *

I am not a talker. You can ask the _Kyuubi_; during our conversation, he did most of the talking, with me inserting a comment here and there.

I prefer listening to speaking, observing to participating; it's how I've been until now, and it's how I always will be. I am a Chronicler, a silent observer who records all that they see for others to read, and, hopefully, learn from.

Nakimkaze Minato never really interested me; he was a genius, sure, but who wasn't back then? What with all the wars going on, many _shinobi_ were literally forcing themselves to become stronger, faster, _better_. Being a genius during Minato's time was not all that special.

The only thing that even remotely interested me about the future _Yondaime_ was the fact that he was a seal master. He created the seal that imprisoned the _Kyuubi_ ; locking the immortal demon inside a young boy, Minato's son, Naruto.

However, that was the only thing about Minato that interested me before Naruto's birth (It shall be stated that after Naruto's birth, the _Kyuubi_'s imprisonment, and Minato's death, I felt a small amount of regret. Had I known that Minato would be powerful enough to seal away the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox I would have actually paid attention to him).

He was a rather simple man to understand; smart, quick-witted, strong and well-liked. He was the student of Jiraiya, the teacher of Kakashi, and the soon-to-be father of Naruto (How the villagers could not tell the boy was the Fourth _Hokage_'s son I have no idea, but I thought it was pretty obvious, and would have thought the same thing even if I hadn't been there on the night of the young blonde's birth).

That is all I needed, no, that is all I cared to know about the so-called genius, Namikaze Minato.

That is, until the man spoke to me.

"Who are you?" He'd asked, his presence announced only by the quiet whisper of the wind through his robes.

"Ai." I had told him, gazing unconcernedly down at the _kunai_ being held at my throat.

"A fake name?" He'd pressed, pushing the _kunai_ lightly against the skin of my jugular; if he had decided to go through with the attack it would have been a fatal blow…had I actually been able to die.

"The only name I have." I'd replied, gazing up at the night's moon; it was full, bathing the village in an ethereal glow.

"Why are you here?" The _kunai _had shifted, dropping a little, the wielder uncertain, as the man seemed to notice that I was not threatened in the least by being held at knife-point.

"To observe." I'd answered softly, tilting my head back as a cool breeze glided over my skin and through my hair.

"Are you an enemy?" The _kunai _resumed its original position, the blade being pressed hard enough to draw blood. I felt the warm liquid trickle down my throat, tickling the skin it flowed over.

"No." The touch of metal disappeared from my throat. I didn't bother turning to look at the man, preferring to stare at the white-gold ball in the inky black sky.

Another whisper of wind and the man was gone. A small smile – the first a human had been able to get out of me in over four thousand years – tugged at the corner of my lips, and I hopped off the cliff-face I had been standing on, landing with a soft _thump_ at the base of the large monument, the cut on my neck having already sealed itself shut.

Four days later, Minato sacrificed his life to seal the _Kyuubi_ in the body of his new-born child.

The night the _Yondaime_ died, I felt an inkling of remorse. It was too late, I'd realized. I had assumed that the man was of no interest, and I had missed the opportunity to study a truly interesting individual.

I shall regret that always.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai _

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Okay, so it's definitely different than what I usually write, but I kind of like this one, actually. I don't know why. I never actually planned to have any dialogue in this story, but there ya go. I just think that Minato was such a good _shinobi_ that he'd notice someone like Ai hanging around, even if no one else was able to.

Was it okay? **Reviews are always appreciated**.


	13. A Consideration

Okay, the only reason I wrote this chapter was, 1) This story got favorited, and, 2) I was inspired by something else I read to write this. I rather like this chapter, so I hope you do, too. It also turned out longer than what I usually write.

Disclaimer: God, I'm getting tired of putting this in here. You know I don't own it, so why bother?

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS* *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS***, I think, I guess, maybe.

Enjoy.

* * *

A Consideration

* * *

_Shinobi_ are not the most noble of creatures. In their quest for power and dominance over others, the _shinobi_ have done some terrible things to some not-so-terrible people.

The _jinchuuriki_.

The vessels of the _bijuu_ were all innocent. They were young and impressionable, and naïve and ignorant, but they were innocent. All children are; it is a fact of life. Children are the embodiment of innocence. They are pure and clean; a blank slate, an empty room, an undisturbed field blanketed by white.

However, the _shinobi_ did not care for the _jinchuuriki_'s innocence, nor did they care that by shoving a blood-thirsty, murderous creature into a child's body, they would be forcing a terrible burden on shoulders too small and too frail to carry it, a mind too young and too confused to understand it, and a soul too easy to break and too fragile to bear it.

And they wondered why most _jinchuuriki_ lost themselves to insanity before adulthood; lost themselves to the monsters in their heads; lost themselves in a deafening sea of _whispersechoesconfusionwhoamI's?__feelingsnottheirowndreamstheydidnotdream._

Naruto was a special, lucky – if sharing a body with a demon could be considered that – case. His father, who loved him dearly and with all his being, who also sealed a monster into a baby's body, did it to _protect_, not **destroy**; he did it to _save_, not **kill**.

The same could not be said for the other _jinchuuriki_.

Most of the other vessels had the _bijuu_ sealed in them for purposes nowhere near as noble as the _Yondaime_'s. The other vessels were created to become a_ weapon_ for their village.

I had never met the_ (createdtobeweaponscreatedtodestroycreatedto__**kill**__) _other _jinchuuriki_, having never really cared for the other _bijuu_ as much as I did the _Kyuubi_.

That is, until the _Chuunin_ Exams.

Young Naruto met a brother-in-pain-and-loneliness-and-heartache-and-abandon by the name of Gaara.

Gaara, the carrier of the One Tailed _Shukaku_, with hair the color of fresh blood, eyes as cold and numb as ice, a personality as aloof and uncaring as the wind, and the word _love_ tattooed on his forehead.

Gaara, a boy younger than Naruto (1) who had seen more than any child should have to, and carried more than any child should be able to.

Gaara, the weapon for _Sunagakure_, the Village Hidden in the Sand.

When I saw the younger _jinchuuriki_, I knew at once that he and Naruto would grow close; not close like lovers or brothers or best friends, but so much_ more_. The two vessels would create a bond so deep that nothing short of death could break it (I also have reason to believe that even after death, their bond will still hold strong).

Then the boy spoke and I realized that he had the surface emotional capacity of a rock. However, underneath that monotonous voice, I could hear echoes of pain; a pain that described loneliness, abandonment, heartache, fear, regret, and a deep, **dark**, bottomless sadness that would take years upon years upon _years_ to heal even a fraction – if healing was even possible for so broken a soul.

Because of the connection I felt between Gaara and Naruto, my interest in the carrier of _Shukaku_ made itself known.

I absolutely _had_ to learn everything I could about this Gaara; I had to observe and record the _jinchuuriki_.

So I did.

Gaara was the youngest son of the fourth _Kazekage_ and the younger brother of Temari and Kankuro, the two siblings who accompanied the red-head to the exams.

Gaara's father ordered a woman named Chiyo, before his birth, to seal the _Shukaku_ in Gaara so that his son would become _Sunagakure_'s greatest weapon.

However, a sacrifice was needed.

So, after using the boy's mother as a sacrifice, Gaara was born with the _Shukaku_ sealed inside him.

While his father trained him some, Gaara's uncle, Yashamaru, raised him.

Because of the demon sealed within him, Gaara was hated and feared by the other members of his village, and, for a time, Yashamaru was the only one who showed the young _jinchuuriki_ kindness. When Gaara would accidentally harm others because of the monster he carried, Yashamaru would be the only one to understand that it wasn't his fault.

The _Kazekage_, however, did not feel the same. He believed Gaara's accidental attacks were the result of a failed experiment, and ordered his death.

When all the assassins he'd sent failed to kill the young red-head, Gaara's father ordered Yashamaru to kill him.

When Gaara's uncle attacked him, Gaara reacted in self-defense and dealt a lethal blow to his attacker. When he realized just who his attacker was, the young _jinchuuriki_ freaked out, screaming and crying, and blamed Yashamaru's attack on his father. However, Yashamaru told Gaara that he had never loved the boy, and that he'd hoped to avenge his sister's – Gaara's mother – death.

In a last ditch effort to kill Gaara, Yashamaru detonated the exploding tags located on his body, telling Gaara to 'please die.' The _jinchuuriki_ survived the resulting explosion, the same explosion that killed the only person he had though cared about him.

Gaara was never the same.

When Gaara met Naruto, though, his life changed.

Naruto, being the kind of person he was, managed to convince Gaara that having something to protect made him stronger than Gaara, who had nothing he cared enough for to protect.

When Gaara left _Konohagakure_, he was no longer the cruel, merciless killer he'd become after Yashamaru's betrayal.

After Naruto's two-and-a-half year training period, we returned to the village to find that Gaara had become the _Kazekage_ of _Sunagakure_- and that he had been captured by the organization called _Akatsuki_.

When we arrived at the cave Gaara had been brought to, I knew right away that the red-headed _jinchuuriki_ was no longer among the living; I could feel neither his life, nor the presence of _Shukaku_ (It appears that _Akatsuki_'s purpose is to extract all the _bijuu_. I don't know, nor care, why).

Then, the old puppet-master, Chiyo, sacrificed her own life and resurrected Gaara.

When Gaara awoke, he awoke surrounded by his friends and the people of his village, all of whom loved and cared for him deeply.

I believe, at that moment, that Gaara felt **whole** and _alive_.

After years and years of losing, regretting and hurting, my heart had become inexistent, and in its place was a hollowness that I felt could never be filled.

When Gaara took Naruto's hand into his own and shook it, the first time he had ever initiated contact, I felt the hollowness that was my heart fill up just a tiny bit.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai _

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Aw, I love Gaara, he's such a sweetie when he gets past his insane urge to kill. So, what'd you think? I'm out of ideas, so I will accept any suggestions if anyone wants me to continue this. I think this chapter's style was a little different than my usual style. Come to think of it, the previous chapter was the same way...I guess I'm trying out new styles? Hm.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I accept any kind, just be nice if you're gonna flame.

(1) He is younger, isn't he? I'm pretty sure he is...

Yashamaru is a pain-in-the-ass to type. Thank goodness I'm done with that bastard's name.


	14. A Thought

Okay, thank evil genus for this one.

Disclaimer: You know the drill, people.

**WARNINGS!!: *SPOILERS* *MAJOR SPOILERS*** and that's all I feel like typing. You should know this by now, my lovelies.

Enjoy.

* * *

A Thought

* * *

Humans use many means to escape from the tragedies of reality.

They use alcohol, drugs, gambling, bullying, killing, and other such means.

I suppose I do the same thing, to an extent.

My studies allow me to set aside any…issues I have at the time and focus on someone else's life. I drown myself in the lives of my case studies, allowing their problems and presences to muffle and mute the demons inside my head. I bask in their pain and misery, forgetting my own. I submerge myself in the memories of their lost loved ones, erasing the losses from my own past.

I become one with my case studies.

I suppose this is why I understand why Tsunade left _Konohagakure_ to gamble and drink away her sorrows. While I don't believe in allowing alcohol to blur my memories and give me reprieve, I do believe that everyone has their own method of tuning out their inner demons.

Naruto trains and trains and trains and _trains_ and trains some more.

Kakashi reads porn; the man might as well glue the book to his face, it's seen there so often.

Jiraiya _writes_ porn and travels around, 'studying' women as they partake in their hygiene rituals.

Sakura heals.

I observe.

Tsunade drinks.

The similarities between the two of us are probably what drew me to the old, young-looking woman.

Tsunade was the granddaughter of the First _Hokage_ and the grandniece of the Second. Her relations led others to call her 'Princess'.

She, along with Jiraiya and Orochimaru, trained under Sarutobi. During the Second Great _Shinobi_ World War, Tsunade, as powerful a healer then as she is now, counteracted Chiyo's poisons, causing the older woman to harbor a sort of…animosity towards the young healer.

At some point during the war, on her younger brother, Nawaki's, twelfth birthday, Tsunade gave him a blue crystal necklace that she had inherited from her grandfather. She had hoped that the necklace would grant her younger brother the luck he needed to become the _Hokage_, as was his dream.

The next day, Nawaki was killed.

Tsunade, having arrived at Nawaki's death scene, made a vain attempt at healing the dying boy.

Obviously, she failed and, in return, got her crystal necklace back.

Soon after that, Tsunade fell in love with a man named Dan. Dan, like Nawaki, also wanted to become _Hokage_. So, as she did with her younger brother, Tsunade gave Dan her crystal necklace, hoping that it would help him achieve his goal.

A few days later, Dan died, his corpse a mess of blood (1).

Tsunade, refusing to allow another loved one to die, poured _chakra_ into Dan's wounds, hoping that, with enough, his injuries would heal and he would survive.

Again, Tsunade was not enough and her necklace was, once again, returned to her possession; a necklace that she had come to believe was cursed, and anyone who wore it would die a terrible death, never to accomplish what they set out to do.

Because of her failures to save both of the men she loved, Tsunade developed a crippling fear of blood, that made her virtually useless in a fight.

After losing both of her most precious people, Tsunade lost faith in the _Hokage _position, believing that only fools with a dying wish would go after such a thing. She and Dan's niece, Shizune, who she'd taken on as her apprentice, left _Konohagakure_, never to look back…

…until Naruto entered her life.

Before Naruto came, Tsunade was an avid drinker and gambler. She drunk excessive amounts of alcohol, hoping the poisonous drink would dull her emotions and erase her pain, making it easier to continue living. She didn't stay in one play too long, for, over time, her debts would begin to pile up, and she'd have to leave before the debt-collectors came for her and Shizune.

When Tsunade first met Naruto, he had said the same thing her two lost loved ones had said, "_I'm gonna become _Hokage_!_"

Her reaction to this statement was controlled; her face a blank mask. Yet I could see the turmoil in her eyes. I could see the fear, pain, anger, sadness and _hatred_ boiling just beneath the surface of her carefully built façade of cool indifference.

Tsunade was scared.

She didn't even know the boy and she already feared for his death.

When Naruto wanted her acknowledgement, she refused to give it, knowing that if she did, the young blond was sure to follow the same path as her ex-lover and late younger brother; the path that led to death.

So, they made a deal. If Naruto could perform a fully functional _Rasengan_ by the end of the week, Tsunade would give him her necklace – _whywhy__**why**__ was she gonna give another person the cursed necklace; the necklace that caused the deaths of everyone she loved_? – and return to the village to become _Godaime_.

When Naruto proved himself to her, nearly mastering the _Rasengan_, Tsunade had prayed to every god she knew of, hoping, begging, _pleading_ that this time, this time the man she put her faith in _would not fail_.

She gave her crystal necklace to the young _jinchuuriki_, hoping that he would succeed where her deceased loved ones had failed.

So far, Naruto, while not yet the _Hokage_, was still alive, kicking and punching and clawing his way through the village's disdain, earning their respect along the way, and making himself a prime candidate for the _Rokudaime_.

Tsunade, I have come to realize, is as tough as nails and just as twisted.

She portrays herself as a strong, tough woman and rarely gives compliments, preferring to instead criticize and put-down others.

She's an awesome Medic-_nin_ with a fist as terrifying as Ga---- ehm, _someone's_ personality.

She's a brilliant, powerful, amazing and strong – strong in more than just the physical meaning – twisted, broken, shattered and hollow.

However, with the intrusion of a bright, _glowing_ Naruto (impossible-to-ignore-Naruto-impossible-hate-Naruto-impossible-not-to-love-Naruto), Tsunade's demeanor changed. Her cynical, bitter attitude towards the world and the _Hokage_ position and her tough, no-one-touch-me-no-one-can-_hurt_-me mask, while still there, was slowly being chipped away at. And I watched as, day after day, Naruto melted the Medic-_nin_'s cold outer shell, revealing a warm, loving woman underneath.

The relationship between Naruto and the _Godaime_ is an odd, but oddly touching one. A woman who has lost everything with a boy who never had anything _to _lose; it is a match made in heaven.

Tsunade has made her final bet, and this one she has no intention of losing, the curse be screwed.

_Until Next Time,_

_Ai_

_(love)_

_

* * *

_Phew! Okay, if you haven't realized it by now, I figure I'll tell you: there's no specific time-line for this fic. Ai pretty much just writes in whatever tenses Ai feels like. Um, wow, so I think this involved a little bit more Ai than usual, hopefully that doesn't turn you away. I was gonna say something else, but I forgot, so...oh well.

**Reviews are always appreciated**, I really do appreciate the people who review my story. You keep me writing, and I love you oh-so-much for it!

(1) I'm not exactly sure how long after Dan dies. Narutopedia didn't say anything about it, so I just put a few days.

Um, anything that isn't accurate was probably on purpose. I do tend to...tweek things to fit the story, but, hopefully, I help you see underneath the underneath.


End file.
